Euterpe
by eirayne
Summary: There's a story behind every song. / A series of one-shots inspired by song lyrics. Updates will come as inspiration does. None will be rated over T.
1. Where Are You Now?

**Euterpe**

 **a.n.** Percy's missing, and Annabeth's doing all she can to stay afloat. Set right before the events of _The Lost Hero_.

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 **ONE—WHERE ARE YOU NOW?**

 _'_ _. . . Where are you now? Atlantis_

 _Under the sea, under the sea . . .'_

 ** _~Faded, by Alan Walker_**

 **The Beach, Camp Half-Blood**

The sea was too tranquil.

Things had gone from bad to worse and Annabeth's nerves were shot and her emotions were on the edge of _spiraling out of control_ and the sea was _far_ too calm to be comforting.

It shouldn't be this calm when Annabeth felt as though she had lost her anchor and was being swept away by the strangling currents. It shouldn't be this calm when the only person who could possibly save her was lost.

Her heart ached, pounding to the beat of the crashing waves on the sand because she couldn't accept the fact that he was gone, couldn't accept the fact that he had disappeared and left her behind.

Not after everything they'd been through.

She wished she could deny the logic. She wished she could deny the facts that were so blatantly obvious. She wished she could deny the idea that the Fates could dream up something so cruel but she _couldn't_ because she knew just how cruel the Fates could be.

And according to the Fates, Annabeth hadn't seen enough cruelty in her life. Being chased into the demigod world at seven years old wasn't cruel enough. Going on quests every year and forgetting the possibility of a relaxing summer wasn't cruel enough. Blindly leading her friends through a maze and holding a burden of fear about losing a love to something _worse than death_ wasn't cruel enough. Fighting a war meant for gods and taking a poisoned knife for an invincible so-much-more-than-friend who was destined to die anyway _wasn't cruel enough._

And, evidently, having only one thing that remained a constant in her life wasn't cruel enough. No, the Fates had to rip that away from her as well, leaving her to drown in a sea of unpredictability.

Feeling the sand beneath her fingertips, a heartbroken smile on her face, she thought back to a time—only a few months ago—when the two of them sat on a picnic bench and shared a blue cupcake.

So little time had passed since then, yet so much had changed for the better that Annabeth felt like an idiot for believing it would last.

She stared out at the tranquil sea, and it was as though he was staring back, the greens and blues swirling in his eyes. The thought brought her some peace amidst the storm within her. And even though the waves of emotion continued to crash and churn, the sea remained tranquil.

The sea shouldn't be this calm but it was and Annabeth latched on to it, onto the ocean's steady heartbeat that quickly became her last sense of permanency. It wasn't an anchor but it kept her afloat for the time being.

She was floating but she was lost in a riptide of emotions and overwhelming troubles and she no longer saw land.

He was the one missing.

But she was the one lost.

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 **thought i'd try something new - all of these stories will be inspired by some of the lyrics of a song, not the _actual_ meaning of a song. also, these are separate stories. this one will have nothing to do with the next one I post. **

**sorry this one was a little short. the next one will be longer, promise!**

 **-eira-**

 _ **side note: the title 'Euterpe' came from the name of the Muse of Lyric Poetry/Song.**_


	2. Tell You All About It

**[a/n] here's the longer update i promised! thanks for reading, 'fav'-ing, following, and reviewing! i know i'm terrible about responding to reviews (my life's been a bit crazy lately) but every single one makes my day!**

 **Home4MentallyUnstable:** thank you! you're comment made me so happy :) and i'll definitely check out your stories as soon as i find the time! also, yeah i know the last update was a bit rushed (it's not just you, don't worry XD). i'm a bit of a perfectionist and i was trying to get it written the way i thought it out in my head but i couldn't figure out how to change it without taking out what i liked. i'll try to keep my stories less rushed in the future. thanks for reviewing!

 **Ocean abyss (guest):** thanks! updates will vary in length and time but there definitely will be more! also - thanks for all the amazing reviews on my other one-shots! they made my day when i saw them this morning! i love to write but i'm really hard on myself about my writing so comments like yours mean so much! thank you! i hope this update is worth the wait!

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 **Euterpe**

 **a.n.** Leo's dead, but Jason has no one else to talk to. Set after the events of _The Blood of Olympus_.

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 **TWO—TELL YOU ALL ABOUT IT**

 _'_ _. . .So let the light guide your way, yeah_

 _Hold every memory as you go_

 _And every road you take, will always lead you home. . .'_

 ** _~See You Again, by Wiz Khalifa_**

 **Half-Blood Hill, Camp Half-Blood**

The stars seemed to shine brighter than usual.

Thoughts of his recent nightmare lingered at the back of his mind and kept his muscles tensed reflexively, but as he sat cross-legged in the overgrown grass of Half-Blood Hill, all he could focus on was how brightly the stars were shining.

The bark of Thalia's tree felt rough against his back, but he didn't care; it was more of an emotional comfort than a physical one. Jason almost felt silly, taking a tree as any form of comfort in the first place, before reminding himself that Thalia's whereabouts were still unknown and—despite knowing she could handle herself perfectly fine—he had every right to worry about her.

For more selfish reasons, Jason wanted his sister back at camp. He wanted someone sleeping in the bunk across from his in the Zeus Cabin so it didn't feel so lonely. He wanted someone he could talk to when a nightmare shakes him out of sleep in terror.

The nightmare had been his fourth one that week—and it was something Jason could trust to be a constant. Every night, the same things: fighting Gaea, Leo dying, Gaea winning, Leo dying, camp being destroyed, Leo dying.

It was a never-ending loop.

If they had been back on the _Argo II,_ Jason might have gone to Piper's room after a nightmare, knowing that no matter how little rest she got, she'd be willing to calm him down. But now that they were back at Camp, Jason doubted he'd be able to walk into Piper's cabin just as easily—at least not with her gossipy half-siblings sleeping only feet away.

It wasn't necessarily a bad thing (Piper needed her sleep, and Jason always felt guilty waking her up) but when insomnia struck at two in the morning after yet another rerun of nightmares, well . . .

Who was there left to talk to?

Jason leaned back until the back of his head hit the rough tree bark. His eyes found the stars again, gleaming intensely against the night sky, and he mentally traced the constellations.

Subconsciously, he kept coming back to one cluster of stars in particular, and a lump formed in his throat as he made out the image.

 _Leo._

The starry lion suddenly seemed so much more prominent amongst its neighboring stars—so easily insignificant, yet so quick to stand out.

Jason barely noticed when he'd opened his mouth to speak.

"Hey, Leo," he said quietly, his eyes continuing to outline the lion in the sky. Although he'd wished for it only moments ago, he suddenly felt relieved that no one was sitting by him. He'd rather not be known as the guy who talks to stars at two in the morning.

"It's been weird without you here, man," he said. The words kept spilling out, and Jason didn't think he could stop even if he wanted to. "It's like someone's ripped the soul from Camp. I don't know if you knew how much you meant to us, but . . ."

A breeze blew past, ruffling his hair and brushing through the pine leaves above him. He tucked his legs to his chest and circled his arms around his knees, immune to the chill of the breeze but still feeling cold.

"It's been pretty peaceful," Jason continued, and the conversational tone in his words shocked even him. "Well, you know, barring that one fight the Ares Cabin got into after they lost Capture the Flag." He grinned softly. "Don't tell them I said this, but a lot of them are pretty sore losers."

The star that might have been the lion's eye twinkled, and Jason imagined Leo's own eyes sparkling amusedly. Something in his chest panged painfully.

"Piper's thinking about visiting her dad for a bit," he went on, his blue eyes never straying from the constellation. "Maybe go to school there this fall. She invited me to come along. I don't want to spend so long without her, but I dunno, man. Meeting the father? Isn't that, like, the one thing all boyfriends dread?"

There was no reply, but Jason could picture Leo's sarcastic look, his teasing remarks, his ever-so-helpful advice. The lump in his throat grew.

"You're supposed to be here, Repair Boy." The nickname sounded wrong without the indignant protests that usually followed it. "You're supposed to help me out and be my wingman with things like this. Piper's birthday is coming up; how am I supposed to say 'I love you and I want to spend every moment with you until some power-hungry god decides to wake up and we lose the peace' with a birthday present?"

The lion's eye twinkled again.

"Harley's building a beacon to find you. He's pretty convinced you're still alive." His voice caught on the 'a-word'. It hurt to even consider that Leo was dead and would not be returning home. It hurt to even put Leo and the idea of death in the same sentence. It felt wrong. "And, _man,_ I hope to the gods that you are. Everyone wants you back but a lot of people are starting to think you really did die in that explosion." He swallowed. "We were kind of running low on hope to begin with. You've been gone so long . . ."

Jason squeezed his eyes shut as the lump in his throat escalated to a stinging behind his eyes. "Gods, Leo—If you're out there, _come home."_

It was silent for a few minutes, only the wind brushing through the leaves and sending ripples through the grass, miming whispers like they were echoing his words.

Jason slowly opened his eyes again. Ignoring the tear tracks on his cheeks, he blinked away the blurred vision and refocused on the glittering night sky, once again noting how brighter the stars seemed.

His eyes found the lion, and he couldn't help but imagine Leo out there somewhere—alive and well and staring at the same starry sky as Jason. The image gave him hope, and Jason held onto it.

Maybe the stars _were_ shining brighter. Maybe they were a beacon of hope. Maybe they were creating a path in the night sky—a trail.

One that would finally lead Leo home.

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 **so getting ideas out of my head and written out with words is hard, i'm discovering. this didn't really turn out how i thought it would, but i kind of like it.**

 **-eira-**


End file.
